A Day in the Life
Posted Mon, Feb 15th 2010, 20:39
Ever had discouragement, with a huge dollop of excitement, all rolled up into a tight ball making chaos of your stomach? That’s about as close as I can get to describing what I’m feeling at the moment. Definitely exciting. Definitely worrisome. But overall, I do have to say what will be, will be. No one will die. But we could seize an opportunity to make a world of change or let it slip through our fingers….
It’s been a while since I put up a posting. Just haven’t felt like it recently. I found out about 2 weeks ago that Fertile Roots Miami has a strong possibility of ending at the end of this month, three months short of when it should be ending. The reason? Money. Silly reason, really. We live in one of the richest places on the planet, a measly $30k is what I’ve seen some people drop on a night out in this town. Not that $30k is insignificant, I’m just pointing out that it’s out there. (If it was insignificant, I guess I wouldn’t be writing a blog about this right now!)
I was expecting this project to last at least until the end of March with the funding through the South Dade Soil and Water Conservation District’s EPA grant. Unfortunately, I was not aware that a 1/3 of the money was gone before the pilot even started. Not that I can blame them, they are allowed to do what they want and yes, if someone will pay for your time to attend meetings to get a project off the ground, then why not get paid? It would have been nice to have the head’s up before, but well, there’s no point in dwelling on it.
What I do find interesting is this inter-generational gap. I find myself dealing with retirees on one hand and kids just out of college on the other. It’s exciting to think that there aren’t that many things that seem to bring those two generations together, but this field (composting, agriculture, sustainability) is doing it. I was at the US Composting Council conference a couple of weeks ago, and was having lunch with some people from the other side of the pond (i.e. the west coast of Florida) and they pointed out how happy they were to see younger people finally involved….That they may be able to ‘pass the torch’ to the younger generation. (I also think that they thought I was much younger than I am – gotta thank those Sobel genes for that). It’s a theme that I saw repeated throughout the conference. Those that have been in this industry for the long haul are finally seeing interest from that new generation and they’re excited to pass on their knowledge. I would think (and hope) that that would be repeated down here in Miami where we have so much to do, but it’s unfortunate that I haven’t seen that enthusiasm quite yet. Never lose hope, however!
Regardless, we will do with what we have. And we will do what we can to see this pilot project through to the end. And I have no doubt that with a little help from our friends, we can and will continue to create gardens and not landfills. J
If you haven’t done it yet, please consider supporting our little project. Buy a ticket to our fundraising dinner, for yourself or give it to a friend. Hell, give it back to us and we’ll treat a local leader to a well-deserved night out! Make a donation, just because you can. Large or small, absolutely anything is appreciated. (Plus it’s tax deductible). If you just can’t, consider volunteering at the event. We promise that everything that we do is entertaining, and we’ll make sure you have a damn good time making a difference. Go here for more info.
In closing, whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re right. You’ll have to thank Henry Ford for that little piece of wisdom. Until next time.
Flying Through Week 4
Posted Thu, Jan 14th 2010, 07:09
Wow! Week 4 allready! Time flies (when you're having fun). So that's the good news...the bad news is that the project may end in 4 weeks and will definitely end in 8 weeks if we do not get additional funding. If you know of any corporate sponsors that would be interested in getting involved, please let us know! And if you’re an individual that would like to see this project continue, please support us by joining us for our “Feast on the Farm” fundraising dinner and silent auction on March 7, 2010 to be held at Paradise Farms. Three top Miami chefs will be serving up an amazing organic, gourmet vegetarian dinner complimented with organic wines and spirits. Tickets are $100 and can be purchased here.
So back to week 4. This week had the troops out in force! DERM (Department of Environmental Resource Management), Miami-Dade County Solid Waste, Sarasota County, a couple people from the permaculture course, plus the usual suspects, all paid us a visit. Our two curing piles finally fell below 90 degrees (the first pile taking what we expected, about 2 weeks, the second pile actually curing faster in one week) meaning that the piles are “finished”. Samples were taken and sent to the lab to determine nutrient levels and test for heavy metals. If all goes well, both piles will be ready to be sent to the urban gardens. Fifty percent will be going to Roots in the City in Overtown, most of the remainder will be going to Troy Academy Garden, which is attached to a juvenile detention center. Both gardens will be testing the compost to determine the optimal soil-to-compost mixing ratios and how well the compost performs against their current practices. They have also been supplied with a list of produce that the participating hotels currently purchase to get an idea of the market. If the gardens are successful at producing high quality herbs and vegetables, hopefully they will be purchased by local restaurants and hotels, thus closing the food loop! That’s the idea anyhow.
On another note, last weekend I attended my first permaculture class. For those of you that don’t know what permaculture, it’s the use of natural systems to create sustainable agriculture and the results are amazing. Permaculture can accelerate nature’s healing process from 50 – 200 years to 1 – 4 years! For a interesting video on how arid, salty land in the Middle East was turned into an oasis is a matter of months, click here. There’s still an opportunity to take the course (it’s every Saturday and Sunday for the next 5 weeks), just show up at Earth N’ Us farms this coming Saturday morning at 9. The instructor will give you homework to get caught up and you can still become certified. For more info, click here.
Until next week!
Week 3 + 2 beautiful piles of dirt
Posted Mon, Jan 4th 2010, 20:00
Week 3 brought to us our second beautiful pile of dark, rich compost. Sitting there, all by themselves, patiently curing for the next 10 days until they are finally ready to be applied to the gardens. You can still see some small remnants of what originally went into the mix (sometime a not fully decomposed chunk of bread, or bits of wood bark) but for the most part, its dark and rich, and once its been cured and screened what is left will look like rich dirt for our soils.
Just so I do not confuse anyone, compost is not dirt. It's a component of dirt, but otherwise called a "soil amendment." It's also not fertilizer. Fertilizer is specially classified and regulated, typically a chemical made out of petroleum, and very high in N-P-K (Nitrogen-Phosporous-Potassium). Compost has significant levels of N-P-K, but in smaller amounts than fertilizer and is very high in beneficial microbial activity that bring balance back to the soil and slowly releases its jewels to plants in a manner that can be absorbed by them. Chemical fertilizers release quick, high doses of nutrients, the majority of which is not picked up by plants, but instead leaches into our soil and water causing serious imbalances. (See the previous post on how N is wreaking havoc on the planet).
But I digress. Next week promises to be especially interesting as, along as temperatures of the 1st curing pile fall below 90 degrees F, we will get to bring our first batch of compost to the gardens! Next step, let's see what we can grow....Looking for some kale for my upcoming cleanse!
Til next week, be sure to check out our events and pictures on the NING site!
Week 2 of Fertile Roots!
Posted Wed, Dec 30th 2009, 18:46
Ah, the trials and tribulations of being female and composting! Takes me back to the days I was running construction jobs right out of college and directing a none-to-happy bunch of men that were twice, if not three times my age and not exactly used to getting direction from a female youngster.
Not to say that I'm directing anyone now, if anything we are all working side-by-side on this project with the same intentions...but the world of waste is not yet a woman's world - yet. I am definitely up for the challenge though (could never say no to a good challenge) and I'm glad there are woman like Monica, Barbara and Katrina that are helping to pave the way.
Back to the project! Week 2 and day 2 of actual composting. We downloaded the composter and out came approximately 2 cubic yards of some beautiful, dark compost. (Check out the NING site for pictures). Now it cures for about 10 days, until temperatures drop, and then off to the urban gardens where we will see what kind of difference it makes!
Most gardens I have visited use compost made out of just yard trimmings. High in carbon, but very low in nitrogen. Plants need nitrogen to grow, so adding compost made out of food residuals with are have higher nitrogen content should show a significant improvement in plant growth. Both Roots In The City and the Troy Academy Gardens will be doing tests for us to see just what type of difference it makes.
Adding natural nitrogen to the soil also allows plants to ability to pick up the nitrogen in a slow-release manner. Important because plants can't absorb chemical nitrogen easily, and about 70% runs off the land and pollutes our soil, rivers and air creating detrimental results such as destroying our ozone layer, contributing to global warming and creating "dead zones" which are killing our oceans. According to a study conducted by Nature, the nitrogen problem ranks right up there with climate change and biodiversity loss as the three greatest threats to the future habitability of Planet Earth! Wow. A really good article for learning about the nitrogen problem is "The Nitrogen Fix: Breaking a Costly Addiction".
Well, I feel good that doing such a simple thing as composting can help protect our oceans, fish, plant diversity, biodiversity, ozone layer, reduce GHGs, produce healthier plants & healthier people - the list goes on and on. And absolutely EVERYONE can do it - whether you live on a farm or a small, one bedroom apartment with no balcony let alone a yard (like me). Have I ever mentioned that I LOVE COMPOSTING?!? Well, let it be a secret no longer....
Happy 2010 to all and til next week....